About

History of Pakiki KidsPakiki Kids first opened for classes in February 2011 after more than a year of planning by a dedicated group of Dunedin parents, principals and teachers. From its beginnings until December 2015, Pakiki Kids was located at North East Valley Normal School and was managed by the Dunedin Gifted Kids Charitable Trust.

At the beginning of 2016, Pakiki Kids transitioned to Dunedin North Intermediate and is now being run by the Dunedin North Intermediate Board of Trustees with DNI Principal Heidi Hayward as the primary management leader. There are two Pakiki Kids paid staff members - the Teacher and the Coordinator.

How Pakiki Kids works and is fundedMost students who attend Pakiki Kids also attend a PK Cluster School. Local schools individually decide whether or not they will be part of Pakiki Kids as there is a financial contribution required for them to participate. A financial contribution is also requested each term from the families of students attending Pakiki Kids to assist with the cost of running of the programme as PK receives no government funding.

New schools are always welcome to become PK Cluster Schools - please contact the PK Coordinator if you would like more information about becoming a Cluster School and what it involves.

Home-schooled students are also welcome to attend Pakiki Kids.

​ReferralsStudents are referred to Pakiki Kids by their school principal. However, parents are also encouraged to talk to their child's classroom teacher or principal if they think their child might benefit from the programme. Parents of home-schooled children should contact the PK Coordinator directly.

Applications to attend Pakiki KidsAcceptance into the Pakiki Kids programme requires both a written application (which is completed by the child's school principal, classroom teacher and parents/caregivers) and the child's attendance at an entry selection workshop. Pakiki Kids contracts the New Zealand Centre for Gifted Education (NZCGE) to carry out entry selection which ensures that the process is rigorous, fair and objective. It is the responsibility of NZCGE to determine which applicants are a match for the PK programme, but then the responsibility of the DNI Principal and the PK Staff to decide which applicants will be offered places at PK for the following year based on a number of different factors including entry selection outcomes, the number of places available for each Cluster School and the number of places available for new students in each class.Pakiki Kids has only one intake per year (at the start of the school year in February) and one entry selection workshop (towards the end of Term 3 for participation in the programme the following year).